Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game finished my big game season this morning

...with this little lady. Pronghorn buck tags are very hard to draw in Idaho. I've only drawn twice in 50 years. So, I started applying for doe tags. They're much easier to draw and I'd rather hunt does than not hunt at all. I was still driving to where I planned to hunt this morning when I spotted a herd on a ridge about 3/4 mile away in a 2 year old burn . I was able to get within 300 yds but they saw me and started to move out. I popped one off but she spun just as I shot and I got a bad hit. She couldn't run but she could still cover some ground. I followed her for a full mile before I could get another shot and put her down. I hate it when that happens. At least I deprived the coyotes of some groceries as she wouldn't have lasted very long.



A while back someone asked if it was possible to hear a bullet hit an animal. It most certainly is. At short range, you probably won't hear it because the bullet arrives while your ears are still ringing. At 2 to 300 yds, though, you can hear a good loud thump as it takes time for the bullet to travel and for the sound to come back to you. Both of these shots were very easy to hear. I knew I'd connected with both of them long before I could get the scope back on target. It's surprising how loud a bullet hit really is to carry that far.

Good eats right there,,,,
Congrats

Num, Num, Num !!!!!

Tender & tasty.

Good eating antelope are my favorite

👍 congrats

Yep. You shoot enough critters you learn what a hit sounds like.

-Jake

congrats ! and yep the thump of the bullet going thru an animal , its like when i smell the gunpowder when the gun goes off ,hard forget that sound of the thump or burned gunpowder .

I've wondered what it would be like to be in combat and hearing those thumps all around you as the bullets came in. That would really be scary.

Nice, a really beautiful animal.

When do they rut?

Sept and Oct, maybe into Nov if it stays warm. It's over now. Then they start herding up for the winter. There were maybe 60 to 80 in this bunch. It's really hard to sneak in close with all those telescopic eyes looking in every direction. As it gets colder and there's some snow, they'll herd in groups of hundreds. The bucks will be with them. In hunting does like this, you have to be really careful to shoot at one with nothing behind her.

The day before this, I was a mile or 2 away from here. I saw a bunch of animals on a low ridge about 1/2 mile away. They were directly in line with the setting sun and I couldn't get a good look at them, just moving shapes. There was nothing other than cattle out there and they sure weren't cows so I took off walking. I'd gone about 1/2 way when I encountered 2 Spanish speaking gentlemen waving their arms and yelling 'zheeps, zheeps!". I found out that there WAS something other than cows and antelope out there. They were living in a fairly nice travel trailer. I'd seen the trailer but never figured it to be a sheep wagon.

Bang….”whop”!

Many years ago I shot a starling in a wide open field with a 22. By chance I hit it in the head and I heard the impact.

You don’t usually hear it around here in timber with too much stuff around to reflect the sound of the shot.

Congratulations.

I’ve heard the impact of an arrow on the ribs a number of times. Shots are mostly close range around here and without enough time lapse between muzzle blast and impact to hear a bullet.

I like lamb.

RC,

64 br BSB?

Either bullet exit?

30-06, 165 gr. Accubond

My bad hit was supposed to hit the chest but she spun and I clipped a hind quarter. It didn't break bone but it messed up a lot of meat. She could trot but not run
My 2d shot was quartering away, about 200 yds. It went in behind the ribs and didn't exit. I didn't find it yet but I haven't cut it up yet. It might be in the neck or front shoulder.

Congratulations to you.

Congrats Rock Chuck!
Glad you had some to choose from.
What unit were you in?

Unit 45.

I found the exit hole. It's right between the shoulder and the neck. It's completely clean, no blood at all. Look at that area on my OP photo. There's nothing there to see. The bullet blew up her chest, then exited through a rib and all the way through the front shoulder. She died before any blood could work it's way out. An antelope doesn't have a lot of bulk to catch a 30-06 bullet.

My favorite big game animal for the table. Heck I'd rather just shoot an antelope doe or two than a buck any day.